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30 December 2014

Meet Nina

Happy New Year lovelies! I hope you
all had a safe & splendid evening with your friends and family :~) May 2015 give you great health, happiness, success, and love. I'm really excited to continue this blogging journey with you all into the new year (and hopefully more to come). As it is
a new year, I'd also like to start something new-- a new series under the tag 'People,' called Meet:____
(place given name in space)! I'll be interviewing people who I think are
passionate, fascinating, driven, creative, noteworthy, and has a story to tell. I think that such
people in the world are not appreciated/celebrated enough, and hopefully, by
starting this series, I could help bring these people to light and in front of
your eyes (even if it's only helping just a little bit, that's enough for me)!

I'd like to start this series with my cousin, Nina. She's
so very talented and have overcome a great amount of hardships in her life, but
she is also determined not to let those hardships get in the way of her goals.
Meet Nina.

How has your hometown shaped you into
the person you are today?

Honestly, the people from my hometown (in
Arizona) who I surround myself with have helped me embrace my sexuality for
what it is and submerge myself in, as my mother likes to call it, “hippie
culture”, or “tree-hugging, pot smoking lesbians.” Earlier this year I
discovered that I was pansexual, which means that I am sexually and
romantically attracted to all gender identities, and luckily for me, my friends
accepted me for it because of how sexually diverse they are themselves. As for
the “hippie culture” part, well I mean, my mom isn’t completely wrong. I fully
embrace being called a tree hugger if it means that I actively participate with
not only my peers, but with my teachers and other adults in my life, in important
discussions regarding animal rights, the importance of feminism, and the unjust
police system’s treatment towards African Americans.

What are your hobbies / are you most
passionate about?

I really
like to sing and make music with lovely people. Music is such an important part
of my life and I’m so glad to be blessed with my voice.

What is your preference of music
and who inspires you the most?

I like all
styles of music, except for country and heavy death metal, but I mostly prefer
indie and rap. Someone who really inspires me is Björk. Björk is such an
inspiration to me because how raw she can get her emotions can be in some of
her songs, while still being so light hearted in her attitude and personality.
She embraces all walks of life and I aspire to be as carefree as her while
still sending a powerful message.

What do you think makes you different
from everyone else?

Being an
artsy fartsy theatre kid and a person of music, I would definitely say that my
ability to create art separates me from most people. No, that does not mean
that I’m that one lonely goth kid that sits at her own lunch table and reads
Edgar Allen Poe and Sylvia Plath, but it does mean that I am more confident in
myself when performing for large crowds.

What
accomplishment are you most proud of?

It’s a tie
between performing Girl on Fire by Alicia Keys for a large crowd a capella when
my music didn’t work, or when I was finally able to sing the entire Love on Top
by Beyoncé without any effort.

How do you think your personality reflects
your personal style?

I honestly
just wear what I think is cute. I guess people would describe it as gothic
grunge?

What's most important in
your life?

The most important
thing to me would be music because it helps keep me going. Honestly, it has
helped me through all the fucked up shit I had to go through this year, and it
inspires me to become more motivated to work towards becoming an artist.

What's the best piece of advice
that's ever been given to you?

Don’t try
to please everyone. Its honestly not worth your time and it only allows people
to walk all over you more.

Is there anything that you've learned
about yourself since starting to sing and dance?

By being a
theatre person and by taking dance this year, I became more confident in auditioning
for things like musicals/musical programs. With the help of my voice and
mediocre dancing abilities, I was able to land a spot in my school musical and
was also accepted in a week long program in New York where you get to train
with Broadway professionals in musical theatre. Sadly, I had to decline this
incredible opportunity due to lack of having enough money to go, but hopefully
next year when I audition again, I will get accepted and finally get to do the
program!

If you have any, what's on your list of
New Year's resolutions?

Drink more
water, take better care of myself/my skin, take more baths, love myself more,
try to patch things up with the friends that I lost this year, stop trying to
please everyone, and to take better care of myself.